AZDisneyDan
<font color=darkorchid>Americans living in London<
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2006
- Messages
- 153
Good morning once again from Congress Park at SSR, it looks to be warmer day today, but I need everyone to pray that this nagging cold/allergy thing I have going stays at bay for the rest of the trip (I have First Defense on the case). Well, we slept in a later yesterday and got a slow start to the day as the sixth straight day of Disney fun we beginning to take its toll on our stamina. After we put the final touches on the last report we got ready and drove over to Epcot. We entered the park at about 11:00, which is way too late for us, but the late night at Mickey's Very Merry forced us to delay our start to this day. Once in the park and after a few obligatory photos of the main entrance area we made the long walk to the Land and downstairs to get FP's for Soarin'. Since we were already there and had not been on Living With the Land since they ditched the live guide, we decided to check it out. We both agreed the attraction was much better without the live guide and we really enjoy the first half with the sets of the various climates.
After we learned to live with the land we left the pavilion and took another shot at finding Nemo over at the Seas with Nemo and Friends. Our clam shell was working this time, but the animatronic fish with the big teeth (have no idea what kind of fish he's supposed to be) that tries to attack Nemo was not working. The ride technology is really great and the DW loved the starfish at the very end of the ride as she begs everyone to help her get out of this repetitive ride. Very funny!! We didn't spend any further time in this pavilion and we back tracked a bit and experienced our favorite Epcot attraction Space Ship Earth.
I think I could ride this attraction all day with so much to see and the ride moves too fast to take in all the detail. We even think the end of the ride is fun, although after repeat viewings and you run out endings to experience and run out of faces to make it might get a bit old.
We e-mailed our funny faces to ourselves and family and the proceeded toward the World Showcase as we had reservations at Le Cellier, my favorite WDW restaurant.
We had some time to kill so we browsed around the shops at the entrance to the World Showcase and then we walked we caught a little of the Canadian Santa Claus show for Holidays Around the World. It was a very cute presentation and Santa had a lot of energy as you might expect from the jolly fellow. Before the end of the show we had to make our way down to Le Cellier for our lunch reservations which were for 1:40 and we took that time as it was all they had available from about 4 or 5 months ago for the entire time we were going to be here. We waited about 10 minutes and about half that we were sitting in the waiting area by ourselves. We got seated and the first thing we noticed was more than a third of the tables were empty. We were shocked at how empty it was had to ask the server what the deal was. He gave us some answer about the Candlelight Processional reservations starting at 2:00 and also the possibility of no shows. He said it varies from day to day where they could have every table going or some days with a bit less and they even take some walk ups. We just could not get it, for a restaurant that is so popular and hard to get into with such a small seating capacity how there could be that many tables were beyond us. Any idea?? 
Our server at Le Cellier (and really both times we have been there) were excellent. He was from British Columbia and was very sweet and friendly and chatted us up just enough to be pleasant but not overbearing. He earned the extra tip we added to the bill. The food as usual was AWESOME!! We both had cheddar cheese soup and dipped our pretzel bread in it and then followed it up with Fillet Mignon, which was such a tasty and tender cut of beef that I savored every bite. We got the seasonal sorbet for desert which was pumpkin and it tasted just like pumpkin pie, very yummy. After that heavy lunch we both felt like collapsing into a coma, but knew we had more to do in Epcot. We walked over to the O' Canada circle vision movie and had to wait for the next show, but when we walked in we overheard two CM's talking and one remarked how she had to tell a guest that using the term "eh" in Canada is a stereotype, kind of like "Y'all" in the South. It was very funny to listen to them; however I wanted to tell her she needs to visit the South because they really do say that there.
Martin Short showed us around his great country to the North and then it was time to get another FP. This time we headed back to Future World and over to Test Track. We grabbed our FP's and made our way back over to the Land for our trip on Soarin'. Even with a FP you have stand through a couple cycles of the movie and even know the wait is not that long, it always feels longer when you have to stand still and the line does not move. We enjoyed our trip, even know the DW has to close her eyes during the LA traffic scene (motion sickness), BUT there as a guy one glider over who took out his camera and started to take flash pictures. The CM got on the microphone during the ride three times to mention no flash pictures and he proceeded to snap away. We along with other would throw him a look every time he took a picture and nothing seemed to matter. When the ride ended the CM went right up to him and told him something. As we exited the ride people were giving him dirty glares and when we got back out into the pavilion and were about to get on the escalator we both made eye contact with the guy and gave him dirty stares.....we just could not resist. We kept our mouths shut to avoid an ugly confrontation, but we couldn't help but give him the stare.
After out trip over California and our chance encounter with a rude guest, we went back into World Showcase and browsed through England, France and Morocco. It was fun to look at all the stuff in England as we currently living there and they have many of the same items we see on a daily basis. Once we reached the American Adventure, the Candlelight Processional was on so we walked up to the standing area and watched about 10 minutes. Neil Patrick Harris (Doogie Houser) was the celebrity narrator and it seemed like a very nice program, but not really worth it for us to go through the trouble of getting seats. Ten minutes was enough and then we caught the next showing of the American Adventure. What an amazing (do I say that a lot??) attraction, the use of animatronics and sets combined with film projection really capture your attention, although there is something about that theater that makes most sleepy. It's nothing against the show, just one of those things. After we renewed our faith in the promise of America (thanks Mr. Franklin and Mr. Twain) we continued around the world showcase on our way to Test Track, stopping and browsing through the various countries and taking special notes in the ones we have actually visited.
We used our FP's for Test Track, which was not necessary as it was a walk on up to the pre-show. After the pre-show, we always seem to get stuck in there as the ride seems to break down a lot and you can never tell if it's just a couple minutes delay or longer. We finally got on and enjoyed our trip along the test track while pointing out hidden Mickeys to each other. After our test dummy experience we realized it was getting close to Illuminations and we needed to eat. The smell inside the Land pavilion had inspired us earlier in the day, so we decided to return and eat at Sunshine Seasons. We both got noodle dishes with chicken and beef and agreed the portion size was too small for the price. The food was decent, not very hot. We gobbled down our MSG (I sure hope not) and once again returned to the World Showcase. This time we went clockwise and decided to take a quick trip to help find Donald Duck in The Three Caballeros at Mexico. We found him once again and watched his performance before grabbing a spot for Illuminations in our favorite spot which is at the end of Mexico just before Norway across from the Margarita bar. The show was just as awesome as before and we really wished we could see that show everyday we were here. It' that good and the location we saw it in was excellent. The holiday tag really adds to the show and the finale just blow your mind....and your ear drums.
At this point the park was closed and it was pretty chilly, so we thought the best way to deal with this situation was to get some desert and what better desert than ice cream. We had been wanting to try to the No Way Jose over at Beach's and Cream at the Beach Club, so we got in our car and drove around Epcot told the security guard our genius plan and he let us in. We got seated very quickly and had anther really nice server who looked exactly like Amy Adams (How do you know???). She brought us the No Way Jose which has chocolate and vanilla ice cream with fudge and peanut butter and whip cream and some other stuff I can' remember, but it was soooo good. The DW exclaimed that she has now found her new favorite desert. We finished the whole thing off and then rolled out of there and back to SSR where we got in contact with our families to report that we were still alive and well and not to expect to hear from us for the rest of the time as our days are getting less and less and we are feeling the stress and sadness as those final day approach.
Well, we are on our way to the Studios and another date with Toy Story Mania (I'm going to get my DW back this time) and then later we head to the Wilderness Lodge for dinner at Whispering Canyon Cafe. As usual, please stay tuned......more to come!!
After we learned to live with the land we left the pavilion and took another shot at finding Nemo over at the Seas with Nemo and Friends. Our clam shell was working this time, but the animatronic fish with the big teeth (have no idea what kind of fish he's supposed to be) that tries to attack Nemo was not working. The ride technology is really great and the DW loved the starfish at the very end of the ride as she begs everyone to help her get out of this repetitive ride. Very funny!! We didn't spend any further time in this pavilion and we back tracked a bit and experienced our favorite Epcot attraction Space Ship Earth.
I think I could ride this attraction all day with so much to see and the ride moves too fast to take in all the detail. We even think the end of the ride is fun, although after repeat viewings and you run out endings to experience and run out of faces to make it might get a bit old. We e-mailed our funny faces to ourselves and family and the proceeded toward the World Showcase as we had reservations at Le Cellier, my favorite WDW restaurant.
We had some time to kill so we browsed around the shops at the entrance to the World Showcase and then we walked we caught a little of the Canadian Santa Claus show for Holidays Around the World. It was a very cute presentation and Santa had a lot of energy as you might expect from the jolly fellow. Before the end of the show we had to make our way down to Le Cellier for our lunch reservations which were for 1:40 and we took that time as it was all they had available from about 4 or 5 months ago for the entire time we were going to be here. We waited about 10 minutes and about half that we were sitting in the waiting area by ourselves. We got seated and the first thing we noticed was more than a third of the tables were empty. We were shocked at how empty it was had to ask the server what the deal was. He gave us some answer about the Candlelight Processional reservations starting at 2:00 and also the possibility of no shows. He said it varies from day to day where they could have every table going or some days with a bit less and they even take some walk ups. We just could not get it, for a restaurant that is so popular and hard to get into with such a small seating capacity how there could be that many tables were beyond us. Any idea?? Our server at Le Cellier (and really both times we have been there) were excellent. He was from British Columbia and was very sweet and friendly and chatted us up just enough to be pleasant but not overbearing. He earned the extra tip we added to the bill. The food as usual was AWESOME!! We both had cheddar cheese soup and dipped our pretzel bread in it and then followed it up with Fillet Mignon, which was such a tasty and tender cut of beef that I savored every bite. We got the seasonal sorbet for desert which was pumpkin and it tasted just like pumpkin pie, very yummy. After that heavy lunch we both felt like collapsing into a coma, but knew we had more to do in Epcot. We walked over to the O' Canada circle vision movie and had to wait for the next show, but when we walked in we overheard two CM's talking and one remarked how she had to tell a guest that using the term "eh" in Canada is a stereotype, kind of like "Y'all" in the South. It was very funny to listen to them; however I wanted to tell her she needs to visit the South because they really do say that there.
Martin Short showed us around his great country to the North and then it was time to get another FP. This time we headed back to Future World and over to Test Track. We grabbed our FP's and made our way back over to the Land for our trip on Soarin'. Even with a FP you have stand through a couple cycles of the movie and even know the wait is not that long, it always feels longer when you have to stand still and the line does not move. We enjoyed our trip, even know the DW has to close her eyes during the LA traffic scene (motion sickness), BUT there as a guy one glider over who took out his camera and started to take flash pictures. The CM got on the microphone during the ride three times to mention no flash pictures and he proceeded to snap away. We along with other would throw him a look every time he took a picture and nothing seemed to matter. When the ride ended the CM went right up to him and told him something. As we exited the ride people were giving him dirty glares and when we got back out into the pavilion and were about to get on the escalator we both made eye contact with the guy and gave him dirty stares.....we just could not resist. We kept our mouths shut to avoid an ugly confrontation, but we couldn't help but give him the stare.
After out trip over California and our chance encounter with a rude guest, we went back into World Showcase and browsed through England, France and Morocco. It was fun to look at all the stuff in England as we currently living there and they have many of the same items we see on a daily basis. Once we reached the American Adventure, the Candlelight Processional was on so we walked up to the standing area and watched about 10 minutes. Neil Patrick Harris (Doogie Houser) was the celebrity narrator and it seemed like a very nice program, but not really worth it for us to go through the trouble of getting seats. Ten minutes was enough and then we caught the next showing of the American Adventure. What an amazing (do I say that a lot??) attraction, the use of animatronics and sets combined with film projection really capture your attention, although there is something about that theater that makes most sleepy. It's nothing against the show, just one of those things. After we renewed our faith in the promise of America (thanks Mr. Franklin and Mr. Twain) we continued around the world showcase on our way to Test Track, stopping and browsing through the various countries and taking special notes in the ones we have actually visited.
We used our FP's for Test Track, which was not necessary as it was a walk on up to the pre-show. After the pre-show, we always seem to get stuck in there as the ride seems to break down a lot and you can never tell if it's just a couple minutes delay or longer. We finally got on and enjoyed our trip along the test track while pointing out hidden Mickeys to each other. After our test dummy experience we realized it was getting close to Illuminations and we needed to eat. The smell inside the Land pavilion had inspired us earlier in the day, so we decided to return and eat at Sunshine Seasons. We both got noodle dishes with chicken and beef and agreed the portion size was too small for the price. The food was decent, not very hot. We gobbled down our MSG (I sure hope not) and once again returned to the World Showcase. This time we went clockwise and decided to take a quick trip to help find Donald Duck in The Three Caballeros at Mexico. We found him once again and watched his performance before grabbing a spot for Illuminations in our favorite spot which is at the end of Mexico just before Norway across from the Margarita bar. The show was just as awesome as before and we really wished we could see that show everyday we were here. It' that good and the location we saw it in was excellent. The holiday tag really adds to the show and the finale just blow your mind....and your ear drums.
At this point the park was closed and it was pretty chilly, so we thought the best way to deal with this situation was to get some desert and what better desert than ice cream. We had been wanting to try to the No Way Jose over at Beach's and Cream at the Beach Club, so we got in our car and drove around Epcot told the security guard our genius plan and he let us in. We got seated very quickly and had anther really nice server who looked exactly like Amy Adams (How do you know???). She brought us the No Way Jose which has chocolate and vanilla ice cream with fudge and peanut butter and whip cream and some other stuff I can' remember, but it was soooo good. The DW exclaimed that she has now found her new favorite desert. We finished the whole thing off and then rolled out of there and back to SSR where we got in contact with our families to report that we were still alive and well and not to expect to hear from us for the rest of the time as our days are getting less and less and we are feeling the stress and sadness as those final day approach.
Well, we are on our way to the Studios and another date with Toy Story Mania (I'm going to get my DW back this time) and then later we head to the Wilderness Lodge for dinner at Whispering Canyon Cafe. As usual, please stay tuned......more to come!!
I was leading going into the last game and then she overtook me and blew me out of the water. I was not happy and was looking forward to a rematch later when we used our FP's.
We still have 3 and a half days but it seems like before you know it, we'll be back in London.
But I don't want to think about tomorrow because it means today is over! So off to AK and Epcot!!!! 
We enjoyed what was probably our last trip to the Himalayas and made our way to the exit of the park, stopping to take in some of the trails/exhibits at the front of the park. A very nice security CM talked to us by a swan exhibit and he was very nice and told us some fun fact about the birds in that area. 
